Slimantics: Muhammad Ali: An American original

In the days since the death of Muhammad Ali, much has been said and written in an attempt to capture the essence of the man.

Lock & Dam repair plan expected soon

Six months after a pair of barges crashed in the dam at the East Bank of the Columbus Lock & Dam, Corps of Engineers Operations Manager Rick Saucer has an idea of the extent of the damage down the one of the dam’s five massive gates.

Late collapse ends Bulldogs’ College World Series hopes

Mississippi State routinely sets attendance records in college baseball. They may have set an attendance record of another sort Saturday night – the quietest gathering of 13,452 people ever assembled to watch a college baseball game.

MSU baseball: The return of the Byrne

In ancient Greek philosophy, it was called “First Cause,” the idea that everything seen in the visible world can be linked to one original source or “first cause.”

Applied in a less cosmic sense, you could make the argument that the “first cause” for the success Mississippi State’s football and baseball programs now enjoy can be attributed to the first of three hires made in 2008.

Bulldogs ride pitching, timely bats to sweep

Mississippi State has now played in 35 NCAA baseball regionals and as of Sunday night have won 12 of them.

As regionals go, the one that ended Sunday was very, very good for the Bulldogs, but it wasn’t a “Super” regional.

That comes this weekend.

MSU beats Cal State Fullerton at its game

For much of Saturday’s showdown between the top-seeded Mississippi State baseball team and second-seeded Cal State Fullerton, the Bulldog faithful were there, 10,656 of them.

They just didn’t seem to know what to do.

This wasn’t what they were accustomed to.

Miley: New radios are ‘lifeline’ for LCSO

A common assumption is a law enforcement officer’s most important tool is his or her weapon.

Area counties remove ‘No Guns Allowed’ signs

It is still possible to encounter “No Guns Allowed” signs around the area. You just won’t see them at any county-owned buildings.

Trust Fund rebound has county cautiously optimistic

Lowndes County supervisors know from recent experience the folly of counting their chickens before they hatch. Even so, the county’s “nest egg” in its Hospital Trust Fund is considerably larger than it was at the start of the year.

Slimantics: Is Mississippi on the threshold of an economic death spiral?

Each April, when the Mississippi legislature ends its session, the furor over new legislation generally drifts away and most Mississippians never really feel the consequences of those new laws in any meaningful way.

25 students begin summer job program

For most folks, today means its back to work after the long Memorial Day weekend.

But for many of the students participating in the City of Columbus Summer Job program, today marks their introduction into the working world.

Slimantics: On Memorial Day weekend, a slice of Americana

It is the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend and the campground at DeWayne Hayes Recreation Center is filled to capacity. All 100 campsites are occupied, some elaborately so, with enormous campers, adorned with flags, personalized signs, even satellite dishes.

Hughes makes spirited case for education

On Nov. 4, Jay Hughes, a Democrat from Oxford, upset incumbent Brad Mayo, a Republican, in the election for the District 12 House of Representatives seat.

Hughes ran on the campaign motto, “It all starts with education.”

April jobless rates in Golden Triangle lowest in years

The last time unemployment rates in Lowndes County were this low? 2001.

Historic Columbus mansion gets new owner

Upon its completion in the early 1850s, the massive Greek Revival Mansion known as “Riverview” has been considered a Columbus treasure and a point of pride as the property at 511 Second St. S. changed owners but never its status as one of the state’s great antebellum homes.

Slimantics: Senior Expo exceeds all expectations

It ain’t easy getting old. First off, it’s terribly time-consuming.

Slimantics: Paws for a Cause has gone to the dogs

On the first Saturday in May, Louisville, Kentucky, is home to “The Run for the Roses.”

On the third Saturday in May, Columbus is home to the “Run of the Noses.”

Slimantics: A thrift store book, an epic journey and an unsolved mystery

This month, text books will be put away for the summer, but that shouldn’t mean an end to reading.

Sprucing up Lady Liberty: 15-year-old Columbus resident looks to take on Eagle Scout project

The last time the Statue of Liberty was fully refurbished, it required $87 million, hundreds of workers and two years to complete. “Lady Liberty” was rededicated in 1984.

Eli Box expects his efforts to spruce up the “Little Lady Liberty” near downtown Columbus will take about six months and come at a far lower cost.

Slimantics: It’s not whether you win or lose …

Now that youth league baseball and softball have started, an old, predictable debate again emerges about the purpose of youth sports and what it says about modern society.